Despite Penn Entertainment’s new sports betting agreement with ESPN, Pennsylvania online casinos will notice little difference from other states.
Penn Entertainment is likely to collaborate with ESPN on the Hollywood Casino PA brand. Nevertheless, Pennsylvania is the only state with a standalone app from Hollywood. It is currently getting ahead of the competition.
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Hollywood Intends to Merge its PA Online Casino with ESPN Bet
Penn Entertainment shocked the gambling business by announcing a breakup with Barstool and a new deal with ESPN, establishing ESPN Bet.
While ESPN is establishing a new sportsbook, an ESPN-branded gambling site seems unlikely to be available. Penn Entertainment CEO Jay Snowden stated during a Q2 2023 earnings conference that each state will offer a standalone Hollywood online casino app at some point:
“We felt it was a good time to shift our focus to Hollywood Casino and the Hollywood brand.”
Currently, Pennsylvania is the only state in which Hollywood has a distinct online casino app. Nothing will change in that sense for Keystone State players. Players in all jurisdictions might anticipate the Hollywood online casino to integrate with the sportsbook when ESPN Bet starts.
“If you are in Pennsylvania, for example, and you are betting on sports with ESPN Bet, you will be able to wager by pressing on the Casino icon and going to Hollywood Casino effortlessly within the same app and platform, just like you can now between Barstool Sportsbook and Barstool iCasino,” Snowden explained.
Why won’t ESPN Bet have a Branded Online Casino?
Penn Entertainment chose to expand its online casino by leveraging its own brand and a well-known name in the gambling business. With the acquisition of four retail establishments, Hollywood Casino has established a digital presence in Pennsylvania:
- Penn National Race Course
- The Meadows
- York (mini-casino)
- Morgantown (mini-casino)
Hollywood at Penn National Race Course (PNRC) and Hollywood at The Meadows are both among the top ten retail PA casinos in terms of slot revenue. In Fiscal Year 2022/2023, The Meadows earned $169.2 million in slot revenue (fifth), and PNRC earned $150.6 million (seventh).
“We have put a lot of money into the portfolio, and we are very proud of the Hollywood brand.” “We believe it establishes a really nice link from digital online casinos,” Snowden added. “We believe that in markets where we have branded Hollywood casinos, it creates an incredibly nice cross-sell opportunity, not just online but also on the brick-and-mortar side.”
ESPN’s branded online casino was never mentioned during Penn Entertainment’s Q2 2023 conference call. Why?
“We believe, as I believe most do, that you really require multiple brands in the long run,” Snowden added.
That is not to say ESPN will never operate a branded casino. Still, Penn Entertainment is not thinking about it right now.
The Performance of Hollywood Casino in the Pennsylvania Market
At the moment, Hollywood’s online casino is only available in Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) is not breaking down income from online casinos by operator. It is impossible to say where Hollywood stands among operators in Pennsylvania.
Hollywood’s web brand is licensed by its parent firm. DraftKings, BetMGM, PointsBet, and Barstool are also partners of Hollywood Penn National. With $426.1 million in annual revenue, the license is the most profitable in the state. In collaboration with Borgata, BetRivers, and SugarHouse, Rivers Casino Philadelphia is expected to produce $209.4 million in 2023. FanDuel and Stardust generated $206.8 million in revenue in collaboration with Valley Forge Casino.
The fact that Hollywood Penn National is connected with two of the major operators, BetMGM and DraftKings, undoubtedly helps with revenue totals. FanDuel, BetRivers, and Caesars are expected to outperform the Hollywood brand.
Hollywood is most likely in the middle of the group among PA’s 21 online casino companies. The brand competes with operators including Borgata, betPARX, SugarHouse, and, previously, Barstool Casino.
If Penn Entertainment did not appreciate Pennsylvania’s performance, it would not be expanding the Hollywood online casino to other states. It is putting its money on its own brand. Let us watch how far they get.